So, I kinda want to get a smartphone, but while I don't mind the phones themselves they usually come with absolutely retarded plans, but I found a provider whose plan I actually like. But, I also want an Android phone. And they only have one Android phone: Samsung Intercept, and it's sold for $250.
Due to what I described above I do not care about any other phone, I do not care about deals on this phone, and unless you can point me to a provider that has unlimited data (text, web, etc.) for $30 a month without a contract I don't want to hear about them, either. Verizon, T-Mobile, AT&T are just way too expensive and their plans are the #1 reason I still don't have smartphone. I almost never talk on a phone so that part of it is something I'd prefer to pay the least for.
So what I want to know is this:
#1: Is $250 a viable price for this phone?
#2: Does this phone break a lot or anything of that sort? Any particular known issue with it?
#3: Is the Android of this phone a viable version, is it going to be able to update itself or w/e? It says 2.1 I have no idea what that means... if 2.2 comes out will it update? Or do I have to pay extra for that?
#4: If I want to leave the plan, what happens to the phone? Is it a completely useless device afterward or do the computer-side capabilities of it (e.g., the Android OS itself) still work?
And a question that's related to pretty much every smartphone I looked at...
# : What the hell is 3G, Mobile Web, and what does "Unlimited 3G, Mobile Web" mean? Does that mean I get wireless internet everywhere where they have coverage or is this some kind of a marketing scheme? If I get wireless internet why is "wi-fi" (normal wireless) also mentioned?
So, I kinda want to get a smartphone, but while I don't mind the phones themselves they usually come with absolutely retarded plans, but I found a provider whose plan I actually like. But, I also want an Android phone. And they only have one Android phone: Samsung Intercept, and it's sold for $250.
So what I want to know is this:
#1: Is $250 a viable price for this phone?
#2: Does this phone break a lot or anything of that sort? Any particular known issue with it?
#3: Is the Android of this phone a viable version, is it going to be able to update itself or w/e? It says 2.1 I have no idea what that means... if 2.2 comes out will it update? Or do I have to pay extra for that?
#4: If I want to leave the plan, what happens to the phone? Is it a completely useless device afterward or do the computer-side capabilities of it (e.g., the Android OS itself) still work?
And a question that's related to pretty much every smartphone I looked at...
# : What the hell is 3G, Mobile Web, and what does "Unlimited 3G, Mobile Web" mean? Does that mean I get wireless internet everywhere where they have coverage or is this some kind of a marketing scheme? If I get wireless internet why is "wi-fi" (normal wireless) also mentioned?
1) 250 with the plan is aweful, but 250 without it is actually reasonable.
2) find a consumer report online for it, but generally, i trust samsung from previous experience; not sure about smartphones though.
3) ive used the motorola droid phones and they get a download from verizon when new versions of the OS are released; but you need to check with the mobile provider to see how to update, but it should be free and automatic.
4) this i dont know. i know phones like verizon and iphones dont have SIM cards and so phones wont cross over, but im not sure about the carrier, although you will lose 3G and basic phone functions (other than 911) when u cancel service. if i cancel my data plan service with verizon they will suspend my phone from its online capabilities.
5) 3G is like wireless internet from the provider that is more expansive than wi-fi, which ofc requires hotspots. unlimited can mean, unlimited, or nowadays a set rate thats pretty high. i know t-mobile or something says its unlimited but it has a cap at some point, check with the provider. Wi-Fi is free if the phone is enabled, but it takes up a lot of battery power on some models. 3G coverage can be spotty around rural areas and sometimes the network can become overloaded by users. i know where you live so i can say that we should get pretty good 3G and wi-fi coverage, #2 in the nation
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Remember the String of Ears
"to the worm in horseradish, the world is horseradish."
I paid $199 for the motorola droid eight months ago, so 250 is reasonable. $30 extra a month is pretty much the going rate for the smartphone. Ya, good choice with the android though, I like the google technology alot more than the iphone. Also it will update itself all the time, the other day I got an update that pretty much reformated the entire look of my phone.
Well, the plan is $25 a month, no contract. Every other plan of the same class is ~$60 a month, generally with contracts... so I am not sure what's better. Generally, I expect to buy the phone once and sit on it (is that even viable?), so I'd go for a lower cost plan rather than a cheap/free phone.
I'm not really talking about crossing over. The smartphone is a computer. Does it WORK after I don't have a provider? E.g., can I use Skype on it or something? Because I can do that with a non-phone portable computer.
"These plans" which? The $25 one? The $60 ones?
By Droid you mean Motorolla Droid? Aren't those just Verizon?
@axion, of course the phone won't be able to call anyone. I'm talking about its COMPUTER capabilities.
E.g., a phone without a plan should be like this thing here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia_N810
Under normal circumstances, that is.
but verizon requires you to have a data plan to use the phone, and id imagine thats the same with any carrier now.
there are equivalents to the motorola droid phones for other carriers. but samsungs usually carry a user-friendly homepage as well for social-media, which for some reason id thought id mention. it doesnt take away from the phone itself though.
you wont be able to access the internet when you cancel your wireless service, if thats what you mean.
if you want something like a small wireless PDA or something, an ipod touch is acceptable.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Remember the String of Ears
"to the worm in horseradish, the world is horseradish."
you shouldnt be able to use their 3G or any wi-fi hotspots without a data plan, but maybe your carrier is a little less stringent and will allow wifi with just the basic voice plan.
lmao, so sorry for not being able to give u a strait answer, i only know verizon and t-mobiles policies.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Remember the String of Ears
"to the worm in horseradish, the world is horseradish."
Look, i bought a samsung almost 2 years ago, its a basic samsung with a touch screen. Anyway it sucks. I'd say stay away from Samsung but i really dont know anything about their newer models.
If the phone you are buying has a touch screen, make sure it dosnt have a huge delay.. ALso make sure you ask about the phone's proccessor... Sometimes it sucks so the phone becomes worse and worse the more time you own it. ANyway... Good luck.
It has a delay on about everything you try to do with it. It has reception problems in areas where other people have full reception. It has this stupid bar that shows up when you run any type of game... The bar covers a part of your screen and the games are not even optimized to the phone so the bar is just sitting there blocking your view. The good things are a loud speaker for mp3 music, a long lasting battery and a nice video camera flash that you can use as a flash light.
Due to what I described above I do not care about any other phone, I do not care about deals on this phone, and unless you can point me to a provider that has unlimited data (text, web, etc.) for $30 a month without a contract I don't want to hear about them, either. Verizon, T-Mobile, AT&T are just way too expensive and their plans are the #1 reason I still don't have smartphone. I almost never talk on a phone so that part of it is something I'd prefer to pay the least for.
So what I want to know is this:
#1: Is $250 a viable price for this phone?
#2: Does this phone break a lot or anything of that sort? Any particular known issue with it?
#3: Is the Android of this phone a viable version, is it going to be able to update itself or w/e? It says 2.1 I have no idea what that means... if 2.2 comes out will it update? Or do I have to pay extra for that?
#4: If I want to leave the plan, what happens to the phone? Is it a completely useless device afterward or do the computer-side capabilities of it (e.g., the Android OS itself) still work?
And a question that's related to pretty much every smartphone I looked at...
# : What the hell is 3G, Mobile Web, and what does "Unlimited 3G, Mobile Web" mean? Does that mean I get wireless internet everywhere where they have coverage or is this some kind of a marketing scheme? If I get wireless internet why is "wi-fi" (normal wireless) also mentioned?
2) find a consumer report online for it, but generally, i trust samsung from previous experience; not sure about smartphones though.
3) ive used the motorola droid phones and they get a download from verizon when new versions of the OS are released; but you need to check with the mobile provider to see how to update, but it should be free and automatic.
4) this i dont know. i know phones like verizon and iphones dont have SIM cards and so phones wont cross over, but im not sure about the carrier, although you will lose 3G and basic phone functions (other than 911) when u cancel service. if i cancel my data plan service with verizon they will suspend my phone from its online capabilities.
5) 3G is like wireless internet from the provider that is more expansive than wi-fi, which ofc requires hotspots. unlimited can mean, unlimited, or nowadays a set rate thats pretty high. i know t-mobile or something says its unlimited but it has a cap at some point, check with the provider. Wi-Fi is free if the phone is enabled, but it takes up a lot of battery power on some models. 3G coverage can be spotty around rural areas and sometimes the network can become overloaded by users. i know where you live so i can say that we should get pretty good 3G and wi-fi coverage, #2 in the nation
"to the worm in horseradish, the world is horseradish."
I'm not really talking about crossing over. The smartphone is a computer. Does it WORK after I don't have a provider? E.g., can I use Skype on it or something? Because I can do that with a non-phone portable computer.
droid phones are more barebones out of the box; you customize them.
some models of smartphones come prepackaged with some social-website apps, like a homepage with sync'ed FB and twitter. just depends on the phone.
you can get google voice and make free calls though, or something like that...
"to the worm in horseradish, the world is horseradish."
"These plans" which? The $25 one? The $60 ones?
By Droid you mean Motorolla Droid? Aren't those just Verizon?
@axion, of course the phone won't be able to call anyone. I'm talking about its COMPUTER capabilities.
E.g., a phone without a plan should be like this thing here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia_N810
Under normal circumstances, that is.
but verizon requires you to have a data plan to use the phone, and id imagine thats the same with any carrier now.
there are equivalents to the motorola droid phones for other carriers. but samsungs usually carry a user-friendly homepage as well for social-media, which for some reason id thought id mention. it doesnt take away from the phone itself though.
you wont be able to access the internet when you cancel your wireless service, if thats what you mean.
if you want something like a small wireless PDA or something, an ipod touch is acceptable.
"to the worm in horseradish, the world is horseradish."
lmao, so sorry for not being able to give u a strait answer, i only know verizon and t-mobiles policies.
"to the worm in horseradish, the world is horseradish."
I plan to call them at some point and ask them a bunch of questions...
If the phone you are buying has a touch screen, make sure it dosnt have a huge delay.. ALso make sure you ask about the phone's proccessor... Sometimes it sucks so the phone becomes worse and worse the more time you own it. ANyway... Good luck.
It has a delay on about everything you try to do with it. It has reception problems in areas where other people have full reception. It has this stupid bar that shows up when you run any type of game... The bar covers a part of your screen and the games are not even optimized to the phone so the bar is just sitting there blocking your view. The good things are a loud speaker for mp3 music, a long lasting battery and a nice video camera flash that you can use as a flash light.
Err, I know shit about phones it's just the only Android phone they offer. Has nothing to do with being female (wtf is a girl phone anyway?).
Nope, just read yesterday, must have a VM phone for the VM plan...
Anyway good luck Equi.